Who should teach your kids about sex?

The original title of the following artivle is"It'sMy Job, Not the School's Job, To Teach My Child About Sex"

There was a time in my life when I understood calculus, differential equations, and advanced physics. Now, however, those brain cells have been permanently deleted. Therefore, I am happy to have someone whose advanced math and physics brain cells are still intact teach my children the wonders of integrals, vectors, and quantum mechanics. On the other hand, it is my job to teach my children about sex and sexuality. Because of this, my 10th grader is now happily engaged in a study hall each day, rather than sitting through the “morally neutral” presentation of human sexuality offered by this quarter’s health class. The public school program pays lip service to abstinence but with a “wink, wink, nudge, nudge” says, “Here is the rest of the story.” They proclaim to the students, “You are not ready to have sex now!” Okay. When will they be ready? The program can’t say “after marriage” because that is a moral stricture and this program is ---all together now—“morally neutral”. So they use the tried and true parental line, “When you are older.” This is followed up with “We know some of you will not follow our advice and are going to be sexually active, so here is what you need to know.”

...Discussions about sex and sexuality have proceeded in an age appropriate fashion their entire lives. I want them to have all the facts.

...I want them to receive this information within the framework of our values formed by our Catholic faith. My children need more than abstinence education. They need character formation and development of the virtue of Chastity.

...In the first encyclical of his papacy, Deus Caritas Est, Pope Benedict XVI describes this marital love as the ultimate reflection of God’s loving relationship with mankind. This is what I want my children to learn.

...So as parents, we need to prepare ourselves. We need to be clear about the Church’s teachings. John Paul II’s Theology of the Body is a pivotal work on human sexuality. However, the full text can be intimidating. I recommend one of the works by Christopher West as a good starting point. In addition, read Real Love by Mary Beth Bonacci and Did Adam and Eve have Belly Buttons by Matthew Pinto. Once you are finished reading them, give them to your teens to read. Then listen to them. Don’t launch into your analysis of the books. Let your children tell you what they understood. Ask questions. Help them to make the lessons their own conclusions, not just parental lectures.